The Far Side of the Mountain - Homeschool Blogger

Nature Walk

Thu, 29 May 2008 09:19:00 -0500

Here are some pictures that I took on our walk yesterday.

You can see another squirrel's tail above the one that is posing.

Black-crowned Night Heron

Copper Mallow

Our little brother Logan was saying "Wow!" about the graffiti.

Eagle by Matthew

Fri, 30 Nov 2007 13:35:00 -0600

Mountain Lion by Evan

Fri, 30 Nov 2007 13:25:00 -0600

To the Peak and Back by Evan

Wed, 11 Jul 2007 17:28:00 -0500

Last weekend Dad and I went on a backpacking trip in the Holy Cross Wilderness with men from three congregations in Colorado. It was a long drive to our first campsite. When we finally reached the campsite, we were already late. We had a supper of food bars that I did not enjoy, but someone gave me an extra hot dog which I cooked over the campfire. Uncle John, Dad and I used our headlamps to pitch our tent.

We woke up at 4:30 and for breakfast Dad and I had an extremely disgusting seed and nut bar. We started hiking, but before we reached the trailhead, the hooks on my hiking boots caught, and I fell with my heavy pack on top of me. I was not hurt aside from a bloody nose.

We hiked up the mountainside until we came to a boulder field where we dropped off our packs, had devotions, and got out our day packs. The men intended to climb fourteen thousand foot Mount of the Holy Cross, but since Dad and I were going more slowly, we decided to just climb the thirteener, Notch Mountain. I was the photographer. We hiked up to the timber line and in front of us lay meadows of wildflowers. We hiked through the meadows taking pictures as we went.

As we went up the mountain, the air got thinner, and I had to take a break every switchback. We ascended a steep boulder field, and almost at the top, a group of hikers, who had passed us in the meadows and were coming down from the top, said that there were 42 switchbacks on that boulder field. I asked them if they had a helicopter, and they just laughed. Every now and then I took a short cut by climbing straight up to the next switchback (which was easier, giving me time to take a break and still beat Dad.)

Right below the top of Notch Mountain, we met the rest of the group for lunch. Everybody was there, because those who had tried to go all the way up Mount of the Holy Cross turned back because of storm clouds. Dad said that he understood why Notch Mountain got its name, because the pile of boulders which formed the peak had two pointy boulders next to each other forming a notch in the middle. The group sat together close to the top and had devotions.

Dad and I decided to climb up to the top, but before we did, a marmot came up to my boot and nibbled on it. I moved before Dad got a picture of it that close and it ran away. At the base of the highest point, I saw something moving in the rocks and saw that it was a bird. It was almost invisible, because of its camouflage. I called Dad’s attention to it, and he came and said that it was a ptarmigan. He also said that he had never seen one before in real life. He took a few pictures and then we noticed that there was another one near it.

At the top, Dad got a picture of Mt. of the Holy Cross at the same point where William H. Jackson took the famous picture of the Cross in 1873. We skidded down a snow patch on one side and began our hike down.

When we arrived at the camp site, Uncle John had already set up the tent. We went to bed, realizing later that it was only 6:15 p.m. We slept better than at the first campsite. I talked during a dream. I said, “Where are we now?”

Dad answered, “We are in the tent.”

I argued, “No we aren’t,” and then I sat up.

The second time I talked in my sleep, I said something about beetles, because I thought we forgot to put our ground cover on. (We did have our ground cover on.)

In the morning I felt very thirsty for water. Dad went to pump some with our water filter. While he was gone, I threw up. Since I was feeling sick, all the guys split up my pack between them so that I didn’t have to carry it down the trail. We had devotions at the trailhead, got in our truck, and began the long drive home.

Cousin Clubhouse

Tue, 26 Jun 2007 09:00:00 -0500

Evan, cousin K and Matthew give a tour of their clubhouse...

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A Logan-sized clubhouse...

Visit with the Great and Grands

Tue, 26 Jun 2007 16:41:00 -0500

Morning Walks by Matthew

Grandpa Bruce, Grandma Margie, and Great Grandma H. came out to Colorado.

Almost every morning, Grandpa would take us on a walk. Somtimes we all rode bikes. Sometimes Evan, Sophie and I rode bikes while Grandpa walked. We usually left around 6 a.m. We went to a pond or an Open Space area.

Last year on a walk with Grandpa, we saw seven coyotes. This year, we didn't see any. This year, we saw American Coots, baby ducks and a Ruddy Duck in the pond, though. We also saw several Grey Herons at a distance. At least that's what we think that they were. On one walk, we picked up garter snakes from the ditch and then let them go.

Great Grandma's Story by Matthew

Great Grandma H. told us a story about when she was a teacher in a one-room schoolhouse. One time a kid was sitting on his desk, bouncing a ball around Lincoln's picture. He knew that he shouldn't do it. Great Grandma walked past him as if she didn't notice him, but when she got beside him, she knocked him off of his desk. He was very surprised!

The Funniest Grandpa by Evan

Last year I put ice down Grandpa's back when he was taking a nap. He woke up and chased me into the bathroom, but I shut the door and locked it just in time. This year Matthew and I tackled him. He always won, though, because he is at least 200 pounds! He also trapped us so we had to resort to guerilla warfare. We escaped outside down the deck stairs and onto the patio. We opened the basement door, snuck upstairs, and when his back was turned, we would jump on him and then run away outside so that he would not know that we came from the basement. Matthew poured water in a cup, put leaves in it and put it in the freezer. A few hours later, he put the ice in his pocket. When Grandpa tackled us, we kept rubbing ice on his legs.

Grandpa has a habit of making names up for us. Mine is “Evy-poo.” Matthew’s is “Matty-matty-thew-thew.” Sophie’s is “Slophie.” She changed her name to “Fast-phie”. Grandpa has three names for Logan. One is “Logey-pogey.” The other is “Logey-pogey-puddin’-pie.” The last one is “L.P.” for short. Because Grandpa calls me “Evy-poo,” every time I see him, I say, “Hi Old Gramps!”

Nurse Grandma by Evan

Grandma served as the nurse this past week. First Sophie climbed a fence, but fell so that her hands got all scraped up with splinters in them. Grandma pulled out most of the splinters and bandaged up her hand. Secondly, Matthew climbed a fence and jumped off, but his shorts caught so that his leg got all scratched. A few days later he showed it to Grandma when it was red and infected. She cleaned it up for him. Thirdly, a dog chased Matthew in the street and Matthew fell and got scraped. I think Grandma washed him up again.

Ruddy Duck by Matthew

Wed, 13 Jun 2007 10:37:00 -0500

Click on the pictures and choose a larger size if you'd like to read the journal entry more easily.

This is the actual duck that we saw. Mom zoomed in as far as the digital zoom would go. As you can see, it was not holding up its tail.

Yellow-headed Black Bird by Evan

Thu, 24 May 2007 17:11:00 -0500

This is a picture of a Yellow-headed Black Bird that I drew with colored pencil. We saw some on one of our walks. It had a harsh, raspy call. We heard it before we saw it.

Two Dudes on a Ranch by Matthew

Fri, 11 May 2007 19:37:00 -0500

Last Saturday Pastor Bob and Mrs. Cheryl brought us on a trip to a ranch in their PT Cruiser. It wasn't a hot rod, but it was cool.

The first thing we did was horseback riding. My horse was named White Cloud. It kept trying to eat the grass at the side of the trail. Later the wrangler said that I handled the horse well.

It rained a lot after that.

We ate and then we went fishing. I got two bites and Evan got three. Only two people actually caught fish.

Pictures courtesy of Pastor Bob. Slideshow takes a little while to load.

Facts About Beavers by Evan

Fri, 1 Dec 2006 17:36:00 -0600

My Mom and Dad took us to Rocky Mountain National Park in October, and we heard a talk on beavers given by a park ranger. She started out her talk by comparing beavers with Olympic swimmers. An Olympic swimmer has goggles, but a beaver has an eye membrane that closes over its eye when it dives into the water. Olympic swimmers have rubber caps to keep aerodynamic, but a beaver is shaped like a torpedo and also has an oil gland under its tail and a split claw on its left hind foot that it constantly uses to spread the oil on its fur so that it can speed through the water. Another key that makes an Olympic swimmer a good swimmer is that he has flippers that help propel him through the water. A beaver may not have flippers, but it does have large feet so that it can swim fast through the water. An Olympic swimmer has ear plugs and nose plugs to keep the water out; similarly a beaver has valves in its nose and ears that automatically close when it dives in. An Olympic swimmer has a wet suit for warmth and waterproofing, a beaver has a very thick tuft of hair that runs along its backbone and is so thick that one can hardly see any skin when it is parted. Like the swimmer�s wet suit, this hair helps keep the water away from its skin and keeps it warm. A beaver is more naturally fast in the water than a human, because a human has to wear special clothes while a beaver is made for the job.

A beaver�s diet consists of willow trees, birch and aspen. It does not eat pine trees, because the sap would gum up its digestive system; it only eats pine trees if it is starving. It chews down the tree to get the upper branches which are just right for its mouth to fit around, and when all the bark is chewed off, the pine branches go to the dam to patch it up. The beaver eats the inner bark under the dry outer bark called cambium. This bark has the most nutrition in it. A beaver�s skull is just big enough to carry a two inch in diameter branch. Since it would be difficult to for a beaver to stand and chew a tree with just two little legs, it uses its tail to make a tripod.

To start a dam a beaver has to have land with a grade of seven degrees or less. First it gets sticks and puts them vertically in the water, then adds mud and more sticks horizontally, then the water is slow enough to build the main dam. For the first year the beaver digs a den where it mates with a female beaver which has pups. The next summer it is time to build a lodge, and the pups are a great help with making the lodge. The inside of the lodge is kind of like a human house! The main part is the family room and down below that is the entrance and beside that is an emergency exit. The outside of the lodge is so tough that a chain saw would be the only thing that could break through it other than a bear!

Under the beaver�s tail is a perfume gland. The beaver mixes its perfume into mud balls that it uses to mark the boundaries of its territory. Beavers are very territorial about their property and they will not let other beavers enter into their territory. A beaver pup can stay in the lodge until it becomes an adult. When it becomes an adult the mother beaver kicks it out.

A beaver changes its habitat more than other animals, providing homes and lodges for other living things. The water built up from the beaver dam makes a maze of small streams with sticks here and there that catch leaves, sediment and other things. After time the beaver dies or moves and leaves behind its pond, and the dam eventually erodes and the pond drains and leaves behind up to two meters of sediment that had been trapped by the dam! All the sediment is healthy for worms and makes good soil for plants. A beaver removes trees around streams and provides sun for flowers and smaller trees. After an aspen tree has been chewed down by a beaver the shoots come up and they produce a chemical that the beaver does not like, but moose and deer like to eat the shoots.